Green Coast Named a Finalist for National Award

Years ago when Green Coast was more of an idea than a reality, the fledgling company applied for a grant, which they didn’t get because, as one grant judge put it, “it sounds great but they’ll never be able to do it.”

Twelve years later, they’re not only doing it, but the New Orleans-based company is seen as a national leader in sustainable development. Recently, Smart Growth America, a preeminent advocacy organization, announced Green Coast President Will Bradshaw as a finalist for a LOCUS Leadership Award, which honors real estate developers and investors who demonstrate a commitment to walkable and sustainable communities.

Bradshaw refuses to see the nomination as an individual honor, but instead views it as an acknowledgement of the company’s work and triple bottom line mission: people, planet, profit.

“Part of the reason we started the company is that we thought the development industry should act responsibly when it came to the environment, affordability and creating places that people love,” Bradshaw says. “We also thought that Green Coast should model what that could look like.”

And the company has been doing just that, starting with its first major commercial project at Washington Avenue and Broad Street, which revitalized a blighted business corridor and prioritized water retention with a rainwater garden and a permeable parking lot.

Smart Growth America was also impressed with the company’s redevelopment of the historic The Pythian building in downtown New Orleans. Green Coast along with fellow co-developers ERG Enterprises and Crescent City Community Land Trust, created a new model for permanent workforce affordable housing, helping make downtown a more walkable and livable neighborhood.

The winners will be announced April 23, but as Bradshaw notes, the nomination itself means much more than any trophy in a case could.

“This speaks to the fact that we’ve been here for a minute, and that we have a track record for doing really interesting things,” Bradshaw says. “Whether we win or not doesn’t matter. What matters is that smart growth and sustainable development has become a reality in New Orleans and it’s now part of the conversation.”